Sports

Navajo Panel Sidetracks On NFL Team’s Name

ASHBURN, VA – JANUARY 09: Jay Gruden (L) poses for a photo with Washington Redskins Executive Vice President and and General Manager Bruce Allen after he was introduced as the new head coach of the Washington Redskins during a press conference at Redskins Park on January 9, 2014 in Ashburn, Virginia. (Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images)

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WINDOW ROCK, Ariz. (AP) — A Navajo Nation Council committee has delayed action on legislation to have the tribe take a stance on the Washington Redskins name.

The committee made up of all 24 lawmakers agreed late last week to hold off on a vote so that schools on the reservation can weigh in. The mascot for at least one high school on the Navajo Nation is the Redskins.

The legislation’s sponsor, Joshua Lavar Butler, says the word can have negative psychological effects on American Indians.

The president of the Navajo Code Talkers Association disagrees. Peter MacDonald told lawmakers at their meeting in Window Rock that the NFL team’s name honors American Indians.

The final authority for the legislation rests with the committee of the whole.